Ducati confirms plans for V4 superbike

DUCATI CEO Claudio Domenicli has said that its V4 engine is coming to its production bikes, although it’s unlikely we’ll see a V4-engined superbike before 2019.

A V4 replacement for the Panigale has been rumored for a while but has been verified by Domenicali commenting that a V4 superbike is ‘getting much, much closer.’

Speaking at Ducati’s MotoGP team presentation, Domenicali said:

‘The engine development we have made in MotoGP has been exceptional, we have an engine which is very reliable, very light, compact and has a lot of interesting technology. We are seriously thinking of introducing it to regular customers as it is a masterpiece of engineering.

‘It must be translated into something that can be sold to customers at a reasonably, even if premium, price. So it will not be an exotic bike like the Desmosedici, but a high-end sports bike. We cannot say when it will happen... but it is getting closer, much closer.’

Paulo Ciabatti, Ducati Corse Sporting Director may gave some indication of when the new V4 would arrive when he stated that the Ducati World Superbike team will ‘continue to race the Panigale in 2017 and 2018.’